SPOT LIGHT NEWS

Seal Rehabilitation Centre Lenie 't Hart

 

 

 

 

by Victor Nougues Y13

The Zeehonden Opvang in Pieterburen, Groningen is a rehabilitation center for Grey and Harbor seals found on the coasts of Holland. It is a non-profit organization that receives no funds from the government. The center relies on the money earned by the visitors and their donations. The Zeehonden opvang was put in place back in 1971 by Lenie’t Hart who lived in Pieterburen. There she started to save pup seals by herself in her garden. Over the years this developed into a modern seal hospital. The center was made to combat the huge decrease in the population of seals found in the North Sea. The seal population was first in distress when they where hunted for their fur. Nearly ¾ of the seals in Holland where poached. A law was then put in place to save these beautiful and gentle animals. Soon a new problem was to appear and cause even bigger havoc.

The increase of transportation and technology caused the oceans to become much more polluted. This increase caused the seals to be born with much weaker immune systems and made them more susceptible to catching diseases. But at the same moment seals from Siberia coming into the North Sea carried a type of illness that they where immune too. But the seals from the North Sea could not fight off the disease. Because the pollution had already weakened their immune system the seals died in large numbers. Seal carcasses where found all along the Dutch coast and had to be all collected by the center. Scientist where invited around the world to find the cause of these deaths. In the end they had found that it was the pollution in the sea that had weakened the seal immune system. This became a revolutionary find and increased the world’s concern about pollutants. Yet with the dedicated help of volunteers the seals have managed to survive and are even starting to increase in numbers. However there is a shortage of volunteers at all times, and helpers are always welcome.

I joined the center this summer and had an unforgettable month. During this time I met people from around the world, learned so much information about seals and even got to experience a seal dissection and release in the wild. If you would enjoy to learn about the care of seals and find it important to save these animals then check out their website at: http://www.zeehondencreche.nl/home/index.htm

The normal day for me at the zeehonden center starts off by waking up at 6 am. After spending 15 minutes in my bed I would get up and head off to the kitchen. There a bowl of cereal and a cup of coffee would start off my day. At 7 am the working day starts and all the workers meet up in the working kitchen to divide the task between everyone. After being told what pool you will be working at you leave with your partner to get started. First fish is needed to feed the seals which can be found in a big sink. Once you have the food, you change your clothes into the working clothes to stop infections from passing from one area to another. At the pool, you have to dress up with a full body plastic suit, with an air mask, a hair net, rubber gloves and finally rubber boots. Then the cleaning part starts. First the seals must be removed from the water with the help of a net and placed in a pen. Then the pools are drained and the whole enclosure is thoroughly cleaned with disinfectant, water and brushes. Once the enclosure is clean we move on to the animals. If they are healthy animals then the fish is thrown into the pool so that they can learn to feed themselves. If the animal has health problems and is not eating then he is forced fed. This is done by sitting on top of the animal and pushing the fish down there throat. Then if medication needs to be given to the animal we use a tube and force it into there stomach. Then a water solution with the medication is put down their throat. A daily temperature check is made on the animal and each week the animals are weighed. This is to keep a check on the general health of the animals. Then when the animals are ready they are released back into there enclosure and a free to roam until the next time. After that the workers have to take off the protective gear, take a shower and then change into new clothes. It might seem extreme but it is the only way to avoid contamination. Even if this is hard physical labor the reward you get is seeing the seals released back into the nature and the satisfaction of a job well done.